Clean House

Ok, let me preface this post with a picture.

I know that I'm always talking about Brad. Brad. Brad. Brad. So I thought I would put a face to the name. This is my favorite picture of us. Actually, we don't have that many pictures together Sad. I should get on that. 

Anywho, like I've said before, Brad is my boyfriend. I may not have mentioned this before, but I live with him. Interestingly enough, I'm not really sure when this happened. I started spending the night more and more and then, I never went back home. ;)

Naturally, since I was staying here all the time, I started to need more and more of my stuff. Eventually, I noticed that it was starting to take over the house. Obviously I didn't do this on purpose. But I'm a girl. So I have a lot of stuff. Clothes, cosmetics, toiletries, school stuff, etc, etc, etc. Brad owns a duplex and we live upstairs (along with our fantastic roommate Jason). It's a good size for us right now, but that size is not huge. And there is not a lot of storage. So after eight months or so of living here, it was getting a little messy and chaotic. 

While Brad claimed he didn't mind (and maybe he really didn't), I did. I felt bad about taking over his space and a little cluttered at the same time. Since he is away at volleyball tourney for his club in California for few days, I decided this was the perfect time to do something about it. I called up my mom (the master of cleaning) and asked if she'd like to go to town on the house with me. Of course, she was all for it. She arrived literally minutes after Brad left for the airport, armed and dangerous.

And that is only some of it. We made several trips to numerous stores for more items to help organize and decorate. Really, I wish I had taken some before pictures just so you could see the amazing difference, but you'll have to settle for the afters.

The hallway:

Shelves! And yes, those are all my shoes (with the exception of Jason's three pairs on the bottom right). There might be more on the bottom of the closet ;)

The foyer/office:

Additions include the white shelf left of the window, the giant blue storage containers (which will eventually be moved to the basement when I'm done with my education portfolio), the white seven-drawer storage, and the ability to see the surface of the desk and couch.

The kitchen:

Please note the cute (fake) plant on top of the fridge. Oh, and the fact that my mom scrubbed the floor on her hands and knees. Thanks mom!


The bathroom:

A few decorative touches

New towel rack and storage stand (with adorable baskets)

New door hanger

Nice clean glass

The bedroom:

Lamp and candle ... and favorite picture, of course

If only you had seen this area before!

Our pets ;)

I think they look better in here than all over the room

A little folding may have taken place

Hers

His

The living room:

Another lamp to "balance out the room" (in the words of my mother)

In my cleaning frenzy, I found a nice family photo aching to be displayed

New wicker chest to hide things sit on

Baskets to organize and framed photos (more to come!)

The secret accomplice:

"The real test is the top of the doors ..."

Didn't you already clean that yesterday?

I owe my mom MEGA MUCHO for helping me with this project. 

The shower I took last night when we were finished felt like the best shower of my life.

Whew!

It feels so good to finally have my stuff put away and to be able to surprise Brad with a clean house when he gets home. (Ok, maybe it won't be such a surprise since I couldn't hold it in and had to tell him that I was doing it. But I still think actually seeing it will be awesome.)

Of course, in addition to top-to-bottom cleaning and organizing, I had to add a few decorative touches to the house to make it into more a home. Hey, two guys lived here before I joined the nest; what do you expect?

I'll let you know what he thinks!

P.S. Sorry for the lack of food/fitness related material, but this was a PROJECT. Plus, I am actually super sore from all of the cleaning, so that counts as a workout, right?